Daniel Pastor Torregrosa — Three oil miniatures: gallant scenes and flowers — 20th century

Set of three small original oil paintings on cardboard by Daniel Pastor Torregrosa (Muro de Alcoy, 1919), a painter linked to the origins of the Alcoy painting industry in the mid-20th century.

The three works, signed "D. Pastor," include two gallant scenes of 18th-century inspiration and a delicate floral still life. In the former, elegantly dressed couples are depicted in scenes of courtship and dancing in gardens with stately architecture. The third represents a bouquet of white flowers arranged in a pink vase against a dark background that enhances the luminosity of the petals.

Despite their small format, the compositions show meticulous work, with brief brushstrokes, small details in the clothing, and a careful distribution of color.

Daniel Pastor Torregrosa and the origins of the "Pastorets"

Daniel Pastor Torregrosa occupies a unique place in the artistic history of Alcoy. During the 1950s, he began creating small paintings on cardboard and tablets that were initially sold in local shops.

The interest of merchants like Carlos Vila favored their distribution in Valencia, Barcelona, and other Spanish cities, contributing to the development of a decorative painting industry that would reach significant expansion over the following decades.

The artist and researcher Rafael Calbo Such has documented this phenomenon in his study L'altra pintura. D'un temps, un indret i una indústria, where he highlights the importance of Pastor's early miniatures, known as "Pastorets."

These three paintings are a representative example of this tradition of small figurative oils, appreciated for their decorative nature and their connection to the commercial history of Alcoy painting.

Technical Specifications

• Author: Daniel Pastor Torregrosa (Muro de Alcoy, 1919).

• Title: Two gallant scenes and a floral still life (descriptive title).

• Chronology: Mid-20th century, possibly the 1950s–1970s.

• Technique and support: Oil on cardboard.

• Dimensions: 10 × 7.5 cm each work.

• Set: Three original paintings.

• Signature: "D. Pastor," on all three compositions.

• Condition: Signs of age, minor stains, wear, and isolated losses of paint, especially at the edges. The compositions retain good legibility.

Workshop Note

The appeal of these three miniatures lies in both the delicacy of their execution and their historical context. Daniel Pastor was linked to the birth of a pictorial tradition that turned small oil paintings on cardboard into a hallmark product of the Alcoy artistic industry.

The gallant scenes and the floral still life bring together three classic motifs of that decorative painting style, preserved here as a signed set with a uniform format. A small sample of a unique episode in the history of 20th-century Spanish commercial art.